"This was quite the spectacle. Marcel still had some power at his disposal."
Shen Fei, who had been waiting for news from Neuvillette at the Opiclin Opera House, turned his attention toward Fontaine when he had nothing else to do. Marcel had not managed to escape before being blocked by the Gendarmerie. However, once he realized he had been exposed, he did not surrender immediately. Instead, he released all the clockwork meka he had purchased in secret and fought the Gendarmerie head-on.
Both sides employed clockwork meka, and the battle quickly became fierce and evenly matched. Flames raged everywhere. Neuvillette was likely concerned about casualties among the Gendarmerie, so he had not allowed their personnel to join the fight.
"Utterly brazen." As the battle continued, Neuvillette grew angry. He slammed his cane heavily against the ground, and a water dragon more than ten meters long materialized in midair. The dragon then charged toward Marcel's side at tremendous speed. The clockwork meka, the humans, and Marcel himself all fell beneath it.
Once the criminals had all been brought down, the Gendarmerie rushed forward and arrested Marcel and his accomplices. Seeing the culprits apprehended, Lynney and Lynette, who had been among the onlookers, quietly slipped away. They had left earlier precisely because they wanted to see the scene for themselves.
After Lynney and Lynette departed, Charlotte immediately rushed out and began taking pictures. That had been the reason for her departure. Knowing that Neuvillette was arresting the culprit behind the serial disappearances of young women, there was no way she would remain in the Opiclin Opera House waiting.
"The trial is tomorrow? Understood. Then thank you, Lady Furina."
Not long afterward, Furina received word from Neuvillette. Since many criminals had been arrested this time and much still needed investigating, Marcel's trial for